


We're Matchmakers Matchmakers, We'll Make You A Match

by sushibunny



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, But They Are Important, Could Be Pre-Canon, F/M, Fluff and Humor, It's Not Really Important, Sif Is Suspicious, The Sifki Is All That Matters, Thor And The Warriors Three Have Non Speaking Parts, everyone is a matchmaker, i guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-22
Updated: 2015-12-22
Packaged: 2018-05-08 08:55:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5491253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sushibunny/pseuds/sushibunny
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Something strange is going on around Sif. Thor and the Warriors Three have been acting oddly around her for weeks. What exactly are they up to and what does Loki have to do with it?</p>
            </blockquote>





	We're Matchmakers Matchmakers, We'll Make You A Match

**Author's Note:**

  * For [hiyas](https://archiveofourown.org/users/hiyas/gifts).



> I thought your prompt was super cute, and I hope I did it justice! Please enjoy and Happy Holidays hiyas!

Sif was confused.

Normally she would not question her friends' suggestion to spend a night of drinking and merrymaking together in the palace after a feast. It was something they did quite often in fact, especially after one or more of them returned from a great battle or hunt, gathering in front of a roaring fire and spinning tales of their achievements as they drank the night away. Normally she would not hesitate to join them, content in their company and more than happy to interject with the truth when their tales began to exceed the realms of reality. Normally she would look forward to such an event.

But normal was just about the last word Sif would use to describe the actions of her friends in recent weeks.

First there was Thor.

Her stalwart friend had been acting strangely around her for some time now, but for the life of her Sif could not figure out why. In the hundreds of years she had known the elder prince, there had been many times she had noted a change in his attitude towards her. Right before it had been announced that she would be allowed to train alongside him and the other males when they were young, Thor had acted oddly around her, trying to hide his excitement on her behalf before it was official. When she had accidentally walked in on him and a petite blonde girl quite literally rolling in the hay in the stables, Thor had avoided her and her gaze for weeks in what she guessed was embarrassment. Thor also tended to act secretive beginning a week or so before the anniversary of her birth every year, obviously trying to keep his gift to her and the 'surprise' party he and the Warriors Three always threw for her a secret.

Thor was a terrible liar, quite the opposite of his brother, and it was always quite obvious to Sif when he was trying to hide something from her. And he most certainly had been as of late. But what that thing was continued to elude her.

He would continuously invite her to sparring matches and then arrive quite late, if even at all. He would also ask her to join him for a meal, but then run off in the middle of it on some urgent matter. Then there were the requests to retrieve items or relay messages on his behalf to the oddest locations. Thor had sent her on errands- not that she particularly minded, Sif was always happy to help out a friend and more so her prince- to the library, the gardens, the tallest tower in the palace, and to the royal chambers amongst other places, for various reasons. She would always comply, bringing back the item or a reply as he wished. Yet Sif still did not understand _why_ Thor suddenly wished these things of her.

And strangely enough, when she thought on it, there was really only one thing all of these odd events had in common: Loki.

For some reason, the younger prince was always there when Thor pulled his vanishing act or at the locations Thor sent her. When Thor left her waiting on the training grounds, Loki was always there, either practicing with his daggers or reading under the same tree he had favored when she and Thor had trained as adolescents, Loki instead choosing to learn spellcraft instead of swordplay. When Thor left abruptly during a meal, Loki was always there, seated on his other side. And when she was sent on an errand, well, Sif had noticed quite quickly that all of the places she was sent were favored by the younger prince.

Why Loki was the common thread in all of Thor's strange behavior, Sif knew not, but she found she didn't mind the fact either. Loki was always a worthy opponent to spar with, and it didn't take much to goad him into joining her in the arena, much to her amusement. He was also a surprisingly tolerable meal companion, not prone to guzzling his drink or inhaling his food like a certain group of four men she knew- well, perhaps save Hogun, he at least had decent manners for the most part- and Sif never had to worry about the conversation lulling when Loki and his silver tongue were around. And the constant appearances of Sif at Loki's frequent haunts had led their interactions to become more commonplace and gain an ease which none had ever seen between them before.

But still, Sif had to wonder what the connection was and what exactly Thor was up to.

Then there were the Warriors Three.

Sif had never considered the three compatriots to be particularly devious. Clever in battle, yes- and with women in Fandral's case- but not in general, everyday actions. She had never had to question the motives behind their actions before, since the three were fairly straightforward men to begin with. But lately...

She thinks the strange occurrences began with Fandral. The suave blonde was well known for partaking in drinking contests and games, and dragging his friends in along with him, so it was no surprise to Sif at first when she found herself pulled into one such game. It was surprising, however, that Fandral had managed to convince the younger prince to join in as well. Seeing Loki at one of their drinking nights was not unusual in itself, though it was still a rarity, but getting the sullen prince to agree to be involved in a game was nearly unheard of. Especially that particular game, something Thor had learned about on Midgard called 'Never Have I Ever,' which Fandral had taken an immediate liking to. Sif vaguely wondered what Fandral had managed to blackmail Loki with in order to gain his participation before deciding it was probably best she did not know the details.

Somewhere between the fifth and sixth round, the statements had started to become oddly specific, seeming to target both the warrior maiden herself and the dark prince. Sif had been too intoxicated at the time to make the connection, but when she woke the next morning slumped over the table in the tavern, listening to the twin snores of Volstagg and Thor, she began to question the seeming coincidence of the whole affair. Or at least she did so after she got over her amusement at finding Loki passed out under the table below her, looking oddly peaceful wrapped around an empty keg of last night's mead.

And that was by no means the last time Fandral had hosted such events, making sure that Sif was aware of Loki's presence every time, as if it was important she knew the prince was in attendance. It did strike her as odd, of course, but then Fandral was always an odd sort to begin with, the inner workings of the woman-chaser's mind as much a mystery to her as the stoic Hogun's, so she could hardly be sure there was really more going on there than what appeared on the surface. And the moment she did begin to suspect something, she would always find Fandral with a woman or three hanging off his arm, cheerfully telling a rousing tale or bursting into song, just as he always had, and Sif began to doubt her worries, blaming them on the drink instead.

Volstagg's actions, however, seemed much more suspect, which made Sif question herself even more. Volstagg, the gentle giant- to his friends at least- who was always straightforward and caring; to think him capable of some sort of plot involving herself... It seemed ridiculous to even consider!

But when she found herself watching his young children for him and his wife, something she quite enjoyed doing, and on multiple occasions Loki would arrive, having been asked to deliver something to Volstagg or to meet with the rotund man for some reason or another, Sif once again became suspicious. Loki was surprisingly good with the children, being able to bring delighted gasps and words of awe with simple magic tricks, until Volstagg returned or the prince was required elsewhere. It always brought a smile to Sif's face to watch. But still, she wondered how many times her 'babysitting duties,' as Jane had once called them- a term that confused and horrified Sif in equal measure- could be interrupted by Loki before they went from chance encounters to something less coincidental.

Perhaps most surprising of all was Hogun's part in all of these strange circumstances.

The most reserved member of the Warriors Three was perhaps the last person Sif would ever suspect of any underhanded motives. And that is precisely why suspecting Hogun of being involved in whatever plot was going on around her took Sif as long as it did.

At first she had thought nothing of it when she had noticed Hogun disappearing around corners as she walked the palace, or into different buildings when she was out in the city, or even when Sif thought she caught sight of him ducking behind a tree while she was out in the royal gardens. She had just assumed the warrior also had business in the current area she was in, or he was just out for a walk, much like herself. She has no reason to think otherwise, of course.

But then she began to notice Hogun speaking in hushed tones- even for him- to Thor, Volstagg, and Fandral. Again, Sif would normally have thought nothing of such an occurrence, except for how their conversations immediately ceased as soon as she approached, all parties involved looking pointedly away from her, though she did manage to catch the younger prince’s name spoken more than once before they noted her presence. She might have been hurt had she not spent the better part of almost a thousand years at their sides, trusting and being trusted in return in life and death situations. She suspected they were all up to something, yes, something involving her- and perhaps a certain dark prince- but she also believed whatever it was that they were hiding was not malicious on their parts.

She just hoped it was nothing too mischievous. And considering Loki seemed to be somehow involved, that was unfortunately quite possible.

But the thing that finally caused Sif to connect all the strange actions of her close friends was not something they themselves did. No, it was something she had never seen coming; a simple conversation.

With Queen Frigga herself.

The Queen approached her that night during the feast, laying a gentle hand on Sif’s arm and speaking to her in low, soft tones that belied the content of her words.

“My dear Sif, you are quite the accomplished young woman, are you not?” the queen began, giving Sif a smile and a look that told the warrior that Frigga was being genuine in her praise. “A fierce warrior, a loyal friend, an expert strategist, and as polished a lady as any in the Asgardian court, amongst many other achievements. Yet thus far you have not opened yourself up to love. Why is that?”

Sif was caught completely off guard by the question, and her shocked look must have betrayed that fact, for Frigga just smiled knowingly, patting Sif on the arm before she moved on, leaving the warrior with a few simple yet poignant words that brought everything suddenly into focus, “You remind me of my precious Loki. Perhaps you should consider that, Lady Sif.”

And consider it she did, for almost a full minute as she was frozen in place from shock. Suddenly it all made sense. Thor and the Warriors Three and their odd behavior, and how Loki always seemed to be unknowingly connected to it in some way. They were all working together… as matchmakers!

Who was the mastermind behind the whole plot, Sif did not know. And she wasn’t sure that it mattered; it would hardly change anything about the situation she now found herself in, which was maneuvered to a seat in front of the fireplace, the spot on the wooden bench next to her taken by her apparent match, Loki, as the four male conspirators huddled across the room, sending the pair surreptitious glances and satisfied smirks every now and then.

“You do realize what they are doing, yes?” Sif spoke finally, looking down into her mug of mead with a resigned sigh.

“Hmm? Whatever do you mean, my lady?” Loki responded, raising a brow in question.

Sif sent him a small smirk. “It seems our dear friends, as well as your mother, have been playing matchmaker. With us.”

An uncharacteristic snort left Loki’s lips as he attempted to take a drink from his own mug, lips curling in amusement. “Oh? Is that so?”

“Indeed,” Sif said, a small smile appearing despite her best efforts. “How do you propose we handle this?”

Loki shot her a sidelong glance, considering. “Well, this is quite a shocking revelation. I think the matter requires further thought before action is taken.”

Sif hummed in agreement before she drained her mug. “I am inclined to agree with you.”

“And here I thought all their odd actions as of late had meant they had finally figured it out.”

She looked at him in shock, brows raised high. “It has been nearly ten years now, and they have never suspected a thing. What in the nine realms makes you think they have finally noticed what was right under their noses after all this time? Surely the great Loki has not slipped and let loose the secret?” Sif teased.

“Ah, you are right as usual, my dear Sif,” Loki said with a chuckle, dropping his hand to the bench, fingers lightly brushing hers in what would appear to be a harmless movement to anyone but the warrior maiden herself. His grin widened at the soft flush that crossed her cheeks. “Would you do me the honor of meeting me in the library after our ‘matchmakers’ have passed out from drink?”

Sif ducked her head to hide her growing blush, cursing the mead for lowering her ability to control her reactions even as she flicked her fingers across his before withdrawing her hand. “It would be my pleasure, my prince.”

“You can be quite certain of that,” Loki murmured slyly, smirk crossing his lips at the heated look she sent him before she rose to refill her mug, and calm her racing heart, before she was unable to continue pretending that their well-meaning friends were not a decade too late in their efforts.


End file.
